Manager on Friday

01/03/13: JJ - "The players have got a lot of favour with the supporters for their plight,

Jim Jefferies spoke exclusively to the website after his Friday morning meeting with Gavin Masterton and he related the news after the subsequent discussion with his squad:-

"The players had concerns, we had a chat about that and they will take the pitch tomorrow. That was always my concern because they have a point with the situation at the Club. We can understand the situation that if the Club was going to collapse and they got a serious injury then they could be in a position where they wouldn't get fixed up at all.

"There is a bigger picture than that though and other things where you have to use your experience to tell them what can happen; what are the right things and wrong things to do. There are a great bunch of boys, professional football players and I said to them 'don't say that you are just going to turn up tomorrow and just go through the motions because there is no point'. I told them that 'if you say that you are going to play, you play to win'. I think that will be the case tomorrow.

"I told them to put out of their minds things like meetings next week (with the PFA Scotland). You have decided to play, that's great, let's get on with it and get everything else out of your mind until we get back in on Monday or Tuesday.

"The players have got a lot of favour with the supporters for their plight, they are trying to help and you don't want to let them down because they want to see their team out there playing. They are already having a hard time of it due to the Club's circumstances and they want to see you out there giving your all. If you do that they will support you all the way down the line and gain nothing but favour."

The Manager felt that the fans would be behind the players no matter what they decided but he stressed that the speculation about possibly not playing was for genuine reasons:-

"If there is not much chance of them being paid they might be in a situation where they might have to move to another club to get a contract that is going to guarantee their wages. They are not going to do that if they get a serious injury and every game that they play here until they sort it out, they run that risk.

"I have had the meeting with Gavin this morning and he gave me the model for the forward plan; the bottom line is - if it all comes off. We need these things to come off for the Club to survive. I don't get involved that is for Gavin and his directors to sort it out but he has made me very aware of the situation at the Club and his plans to get the Club back on an even keel."